A sense of peace envelops me as I enter the Nilgiri Biosphere Nature Park (NBNP) at Thuvaipathy village. The hum in the air has nothing to do with the hustle and bustle of the city. As I wait for Arthur Steele, director of the park, under the huge tree just before the café, a little pillar catches my eye. It has a gecko, a garden lizard, an owl, a snake, a spider, a beetle carved and painted on the stone. I walk around it a few times admiringly. From behind me I hear, “ Edhuku antha kalla pradakshinam panra? ” (Why is she going around that stone?). I turn around hurriedly to realise that a family has been watching me with great interest.
Luckily Arthur turns up and I hurry away for my guided tour. Established by the Coimbatore Zoological Park and Conservation Centre, the NBNP aims to protect, conserve and propagate endemic and rare, threatened and endangered species of flora. NBNP has a germplasm bank of over 28,000 trees from 450 different species including 20 species of critically endangered trees. It’s quite a shock to be told that the 70 acres of greenery are of fairly recent origin. Near the entrance are two photos — one from the time the park was established in 1986 and another more recent one. In the first, the bare patch is unmistakeable. There is just one green spot. The second shows the current spread of the park.
As we walk on the cobbled pathway, I spot familiar names — the magizham , for instance. I’ve seen the flower but I didn’t know it was from a tree. And then the elantha tree. “Oh that’s the ber ,” I squeal delightedly, remembering times when I bought handfuls from a roadside vendor. One tree has a sign that says ‘ pei ilavam ’. Kandasamy, the park’s botany expert, says that the flowers exude a rotten odour, almost like that of a decomposed carcass. But why pei , I ask. “Probably to keep people away,” he says. “The odour can cause a bad headache.”
All the trees have boards that give you the Tamil and the Latin name. A little sticker identifies its use: medicinal, fodder, timber, fruit… As we pass a tree, Arthur says, “The resin from this is used to make agarbattis .” At another, he plucks a leaf and holds it out. “Here, feel this.” I run my finger over it and feel as if my skin is being scraped off. Arthur laughs at my surprise. “That’s the sandpaper tree,” he says. “The leaves are used to polish ivory figures.”
The park’s rainwater harvesting system and 25 check dams across the property ensure that the park meets its water needs even in summer. As we walk down the cobbled walkway and across a couple of wooden bridges, Arthur shows me the check dams and the trenches that have been dug to ensure that rainwater reaches the right spots. He is also waging war against the lantana that has taken over much of the park. “In three years, we’ve managed to get rid of it from the main areas. But it’s still there in the outer perimeter.”
As we talk and walk, a sudden flash of blue stops us in our tracks. It’s a peacock, mincing his way over the ground. Arthur spots a reddish patch on one of the trees and points out, “This is where the spotted deer rub the velvet off their horns.” There’s plenty of deer in the park except today they’ve retreated to cooler areas that also have water. Elephants too mark their presence with broken branches and piles of poop.
Apart from the conservation and propagation of flora, the park also works to spread awareness about the need to safeguard the environment and encourages visits from school and college students. I remark on the clean surroundings, the only litter seen being leaves and mud. “Not always,” says Arthur. It’s a full time job for the staff. But he finds it encouraging that some children collect all the junk they find and hand it over for disposal. “It shows we’re getting through to some people.”
As we turn to head back, Arthur stops near a few pots and breaks off a leaf. “What does the smell remind you of?” he asks. I sniff at it cautiously. It’s not fragrant; the familiar aroma reminds me of food. But I can’t place it. Arthur moves away from the pot and I see the label “ Basmati pandanus ”. When added to rice and cooked, it gives a basmati -like flavour.
The park has a 250-seater covered amphitheatre in which they show films, a café that offers tea and snacks (they also do lunch for a group of 10 or more if you give them advance warning). There are two hiking trails that offer a bird’s-eye view of the available biodiversity. Along these trails are signboards of the various kinds of fauna seen in this area. A Miyawaki enclosure tells visitors what the urban afforestation method is all about. A nursery allows visitors to buy saplings and plants at a nominal cost. Arthur’s plans include creating pathways that would allow wheelchairs and strollers to be used. “But I don’t want this to become a picnic spot,” he says. “I hope it becomes a spot where people come to be one with Nature and to learn about the need to conserve biodiversity.”
Nilgiri Biosphere Nature Park
Location: Thuvaipathy Village, Anaikatti
Time: Open from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. (Tuesdays holiday)
Entry fee: Rs. 50 for adults; Rs.25 for students with school/college id; Rs. 35 for children without id
Contact: Call +919585500146/147/148 or email info@nbnaturepark@com
Website: www.nbnaturepark.com
